Here are the big stories from Karnataka today

Karnataka Today newsletter: KERC takes Escoms to task following death of woman by electrocution in Bengaluru, and more

The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) took electricity supply companies (escoms) in the State to task for their negligence resulting in electrical accidents. This follows the death of 55-year-old Manjamma by electrocution on October 7 near Tavarekere in Bengaluru. The death highlighted the lack of maintenance of electrical infrastructure by Bescom.

The woman died after coming in contact with a snapped conductor the same way that a 23-year-old woman and her baby died in November 2023 near Kadugodi. “We cannot take human lives so lightly. We have to take action against irresponsible officers. They cannot wash their hands off saying it was a technical fault. We will take strict action even in this case,” said P. Ravikumar, Chairman, KERC.

Uber Pet, an initiative by the ridesharing app which allows people to take their pets, both cats and dogs, along for a ride, has been launched in Bengaluru. According to Uber, this new reserve-only service enables pet owners to ‘enjoy stress-free travel with their furry companions, whether it’s a quick trip to the vet or an outing to their favourite pet-friendly cafe’.

One can select the Uber Pet option in the app and set the pick-up time, which can be anywhere between 60 minutes and 90 days in advance, to make the booking. By selecting the Uber Pet option, drivers will be notified that a pet will be travelling, making the experience smooth and enjoyable for both the rider and the driver.

The Fairwork India Ratings 2024 report, which analyses the work conditions on digital labour platforms in India, draws a picture of aggregators who are non-committal to ensuring that workers earn the local living wage and unwilling to recognise collectivisation of workers. This year, no platform scored more than six out of the maximum 10 points, and none scored all the first points across the five principles — Fair Pay, Fair Conditions, Fair Contracts, Fair Management, and Fair Representation.

The report titled ‘Fairwork India Ratings 2024: Labour Standards in the Platform Economy’ examines the changing nature of platform work as platforms increasingly take control of when and for how long workers can provide services, or gigs. It also discusses the potential impact of proposed legislation for platform workers in Karnataka and Jharkhand.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) contractors have claimed that, for the past one month, they have been unable to upload bills to the newly introduced Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) software for the works completed. They alleged that this has resulted in additional burden for the already beleaguered civic contractors.